White House chief economic adviser Larry Kudlow. | Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP Photo
White House Economic Adviser Larry Kudlow on Wednesday said that businesses should not be held responsible for employees or customers getting sick as governors move to reopen state economies.
Kudlow was optimistic about reopening the economy, adding that the U.S. “may be coming down the homestretch.” He said May will be a “transition month,” and that the U.S. will see a phased economic reopening across the country. And as these businesses begin to open up, Kudlow said he’s not worried about safety measures slipping if companies aren’t held liable, suggesting that states would do “a very good job” monitoring the businesses.
“Businesses, particularly small businesses that don’t have massive resources, should not be held liable — should not be held to trial lawyers putting on false lawsuits that will probably be thrown out of court,” Kudlow told CNBC. “You have to give the businesses some confidence here that if something happens, and it may not be their fault — I mean, the disease is an infectious disease.”
Kudlow continued: “If something happens, you can’t take them out of business. You can’t throw big lawsuits at them. And I think liability reforms and safeguards are going to be very important part of this. Some of this we can do probably on a regulatory basis. Part of it may require some additional legislation. But that’s a very important point here. Someone has to defend the businesses.”
Kudlow’s comments come after President Donald Trump on Monday said the White House was looking at ways to rid companies of liability, shielding them from lawsuits and other legal problems that could emerge if coronavirus affects employees and customers.
“We just don’t want that because we want the companies to open and to open strong,” Trump said during the press briefing. “We just don’t want that because we want the companies to open and to open strong. But I’ll get you a legal opinion on that.”
Kudlow: Businesses shouldn"t be held liable for employees and customers getting coronavirus
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